Valley Cottage, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/12/2016 -- Future Market Insights delivers key insights on the global lightweight automotive body panels market in its latest report titled "Lightweight Automotive Body Panels Market: Global Industry Analysis and Opportunity Assessment, 2016-2026." Global sales of lightweight automotive body panels is estimated to be valued at US$ 99.6 Bn by the end of 2016, witnessing a Y-o-Y growth of 3.9% over 2015. APEJ is estimated to account for a volume share of 29.2% in the global market by the end of 2016 and is expected to retain its dominance throughout the forecast period.

Automotive body panels such as bumpers, hoods, door panels, roof, and trunk lids are manufactured using lightweight materials such as high-strength steel, aluminium, magnesium, and polymers and composites in order to provide desired strength with reduced weight. Lightweight automotive body panels help improve fuel economy and performance of vehicles by reducing the overall weight of the vehicle. About 25% reduction in automobile weight saves 3.5 to 5.0 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions over the lifetime of an average car. Manufacturers today are adopting lightweight body panels in vehicles in order to comply with government regulations pertaining to greenhouse gas emissions.

According to Future Market Insights analysis, steady recovery in global automotive production along with an increasing focus on lightweighting is driving market demand for lightweight automotive body panels. Rising disposable income with growing economic conditions is driving global automotive production. With an increase in automotive production, concerns for increasing greenhouse gas emissions is rising globally. In order to tackle greenhouse gas emissions, governments across the globe are implementing stringent regulations to meet fuel emission standards. To comply with such stringent regulations, manufacturers are expected to increase their focus on automotive lightweighting. Increasing automotive production along with an increasing focus on lightweighting is anticipated to drive market demand over the forecast period. However, high costs associated with lightweighting materials are hindering widespread adoption and this is likely to restrict market growth over the forecast period.

The Metals material type segment is estimated to be valued at US$ 92.7 Bn by 2016 end

The Door Panels component type segment is anticipated to be a prominent segment accounting for maximum market share of 32.9% by 2016 end

The Passenger Car vehicle type segment is estimated to expand at a significant CAGR of 5.5% over the forecast period

Regional market projections

The global lightweight automotive body panels market is segmented on the basis of region into North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific (excluding Japan), Japan, and Middle East & Africa. Middle East & Africa and APEJ are expected to register a relatively higher CAGR in terms of value over the forecast period. The anticipated automotive production growth in China and India is projected to drive market demand in the APEJ region. North America and Western Europe are projected to collectively account for a market value share of over 52.8% by the end of 2016.